The Lamont-Lieberman Primary Fight - An Analysis from the Field

For eight months starting in January and concluding in August, I was involved in a hotly contested Democratic primary in the state of Connecticut. No, it not was the senate race between challenger Ned Lamont and three term incumbent Joe Lieberman. I was working for the Mayor of Stamford, Dannel Malloy, who was vying for his party's nomination for governor. Sadly, our campaign came up just short losing by 1.5% after being down in the polls 20 points just a few weeks prior.

My work on the campaign gave me an interesting, insider if you will, perspective on the Lamont-Lieberman race, however, and what most media pundits have missed. The primary contest had been billed as a referendum on the War. Many liberals viewed it in more encompassing terms as a referendum on President Bush as well - hard to fathom that in a state where his approval rating hovers around 30% that a primary decided by three percentage points would fit that framework. Conservatives spun this as a fracturing of the Democratic Party and as a sign of intolerance toward moderate viewpoints within it.

What this Primary was, however, was all those things and much much more. First, it must be stated that Senator Lieberman's campaign was extremely poorly run from start almost until finish. Here is a quick lesson for any future senator: if you are the most vocal supporter in your own party of a war that is extremely unpopular in your party and your state, if you are additionally viewed as overly supportive of a president who is extremely unpopular in your party and your state and whose legacy hangs in the balance of the aforementioned unpopular war, and if you go so far as to write a scathing op-ed in the Wall Street Journal - that appears as though it could have been ghost written by members of the aforementioned unpopular president's administration - stating that those who criticize the war efforts undermine the troops, you may be susceptible to a primary challenge. The fact that the Lieberman campaign did not sniff the scent of a primary challenger in the air is totally unfathomable, but speaks to a perhaps endemic problem with the Senator that I shall get to later.

Joe Lieberman has not been in a tough Senate race in the state of Connecticut since 1988 when he first upset then three term incumbent Lowell Weicker. In 1994 he was easily reelected and in 2000, reelection came so easily that he did not have to take any days away from campaigning with Al Gore. And what happened between 1994 - the last year the Senator campaigned in the state - and now? He lost touch with his base. Those Democrats that are the party activists, who fill phone banks, who vote at conventions, who are the first point of contact for those who would like to run, Joe Lieberman lost touch with. They are the ones who lost faith in him, who were courted initially by the newcomer, Ned Lamont, who could have served as the first line - and perhaps only line - of defense necessary to turn back any would-be challengers. Instead, Senator Lieberman continued his tried and true strategy of staying in touch, visiting every day folks in diners across the state, doing nothing to repair the bond with his Democratic base.

Out in the field, the reasons why people were not supporting Joe were many. For many it was the War. But for others, they did not feel as though he had brought home the bacon. Others thought that he reveled in undermining Democrats in D.C. Still others thought that he took them for granted. And then there were those who he lost along the way through displays of apparent arrogance, a sense of entitlement, and his unwillingness to abide by the results of the primary. The dynamic that became apparent play was that the War emerged merely a catalyst that allowed Ned Lamont to become a viable alternative to Senator Lieberman. Once Democrats had a realistic choice, feelings and issues that had been stored up over many years for some came to the surface. Many felt that finally they had another option and they were going to exercise it.

This story is neither as sexy nor as black and white as the one the media pundits harped upon, but it is as I, someone working along side both camps in the other hotly contested state-wide primary, observed it. People supported Ned Lamont and opposed Joe Lieberman for a multitude of reasons. The Senator's campaign made many strategic errors along the way. They did not seem to realize they were in a fight until Ned Lamont's candidacy had already gained self-sustaining strength. But at the end of the day, you've got take care of your base. The Senate is a great institution in how it is buffeted from the people through six-year terms. Indeed, some like Senator Lieberman can stay away for twelve. But it is a rule that rings loud and clearly more often than not - you've got to take care of your base. It is fitting and not at all surprising that the greatest challenge that a Democratic Senator who is known for his moderate/conservative views has faced in his 18 years of service comes from a challenge not from the right or center but from the left. And it is not surprising that the Senator is relearning how to fight in his own state – he has not had to fight for 18 years.